Information processing system and information processing apparatus

ABSTRACT

An information processing system includes: a physical measurement apparatus measuring the body of a user and radio-transmitting measurement data; and an information processing apparatus receiving the measurement data radio-transmitted from the physical measurement apparatus, displaying information on the measurement data of the user on a screen, and displaying a notice prompting the user to conduct measurement when no measurement data is received by a predetermined time for measurement.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/159,538, Jun. 14, 2011, which claims priority from JapanesePatent Application No. JP 2010-145425 filed in the Japanese PatentOffice on Jun. 25, 2010, the entire contents of which are incorporatedherein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to an information processing systemincluding a physical measurement apparatus such as a scale, a bloodpressure monitor, a body composition meter, or a passometer and adigital apparatus such as a television which receives measurement datafrom the physical measurement apparatus and displays daily measurementdata in the form of a graph or the like. The present disclosure alsorelates to an information processing apparatus such as a television fordisplaying daily measurement data received from a physical measurementapparatus in the form of a graph or the like.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Presently, people are highly health-conscious, and physical measurementapparatus such as scales, blood pressure monitors, body compositionmeters, and passometers are widely used not only in medical institutionsbut also in homes. In order to control physical conditions properly, itis preferable for each person to check daily changes in physicalconditions by him- or herself by conducting measurement using thosephysical measurement apparatus on a daily basis.

For example, a health care program has been proposed, which includes thesteps of transmitting measurement data obtained by a user by measuringhis or her weight using a scale to a television or a different type ofdigital apparatus every day, storing the received measurement data atthe television with the date and time of measurement, and displaying thedata in the form of a graph on a display screen when the user wishes tosee it (see JP-A-2006-246230 (Patent Document 1)). The user can checkchanges in information concerning his or her physical condition such asthe weight from the graph displayed on the screen. Further, the user maybe motivated by checking the graph to continue the measurement the nextday and afterwards.

Instead of wired communication such as wired USB, radio communicationutilizing a wireless network or the like may be conveniently used asmeans for communication between the physical measurement apparatus andthe digital apparatus. For example, Continua standard that is a radiocommunications standard for health-care apparatus has been formulated byContinua Health Alliance which is promoting standardization ofconnection compatibility between physical measurement apparatus anddigital apparatus.

Instead of recording measurement data using a household digitalapparatus such as a television, the data may be sent to an externalserver through a network such as the internet to have the data managedby the server. A user can look at daily measurement data in the form ofa graph by accessing the server from the household digital apparatussuch as a television.

In order to control one's physical condition properly, it is importantto conduct measurement using a physical measurement apparatus every day.However, most users of physical measurement apparatus tend to neglectthe measurement sometimes, whereas the users watch television programssubstantially every day as if it were a daily routine. A wide variety oftelevision programs showing news, sports, dramas, talk shows, etc. arebroadcast every day. Watching television is a fun, and a television canbe easily turned on through a substantially unconscious action of auser. On the contrary, a physical measurement apparatus is used for onlyone purpose, i.e., the measurement of physical conditions, and measuringactivities themselves are not attractive. When a user forgets to conductmeasurement, it is difficult for the user to remember the task unlessurged by someone.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is desirable to provide an information processing system whichincludes a physical measurement apparatus such as a scale, a bloodpressure monitor, a body composition meter, or a passometer and adigital apparatus such as a television receiving measurement data fromthe physical measurement apparatus and displaying daily measurement datain the form of a graph or the like in a preferable manner. It is alsodesirable to provide an information processing apparatus of such asystem.

It is also desirable to provide an information processing system and aninformation processing apparatus which allow daily measurement data tobe displayed in the form of a graph or the like in a preferable mannerwhile preventing a user from carelessly neglecting measurement using aphysical measurement apparatus.

(1) An embodiment of the present disclosure is directed to aninformation processing system including a physical measurement apparatusmeasuring the body of a user and radio-transmitting measurement data,and an information processing apparatus receiving the measurement dataradio-transmitted from the physical measurement apparatus, displayinginformation on the measurement data of the user on a screen, anddisplaying a notice prompting the user to conduct measurement when nomeasurement data is received by a predetermined time for measurement.

-   -   The term “system” in this context means a logical collection of        a plurality of apparatus (or functional modules for implementing        particular functions), and the term is used regardless of        whether the apparatus or functional modules are contained in a        single housing or not.

(2) Another embodiment of the present disclosure is directed to aninformation processing apparatus including a display section, a radiocommunication section, and a storage section. The radio communicationsection receives measurement data of a user radio-transmitted from aphysical measurement apparatus. The display section displays informationon the measurement data from the user. A notice prompting the user toconduct measurement is displayed when no measurement data is received bya predetermined time for measurement.

(3) According to still another embodiment of the present disclosure, theinformation processing apparatus may be configured to further include anaudio output section to provide audio output of an alarm sound promptingthe user to conduct measurement when no measurement data is received bythe time for measurement.

(4) According to yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, theinformation processing apparatus may be configured such that measurementdata of each user received from the physical measurement apparatus isstored in the storage section in association with a time and date formeasurement for each user. Changes in the measurement data of the usermay be displayed at the display section in the form of a graph.

(5) According to still yet another embodiment of the present disclosure,the information processing apparatus may be configured such that themeasurement data is transmitted from the physical measurement apparatus,the data being accompanied by identification information of the user. Anotice may be displayed at the display section when the received dataare significantly different from past measurement data of the same userwhich have been stored in the storage section to notify the user of thedifference.

(6) According to further another embodiment of the present disclosure,the information processing apparatus may be configured to furtherinclude a plurality of physical measurement apparatus. A separate timefor measurement may be set for each of the physical measurementapparatus when measurement data of a user are received from theplurality of physical measurement apparatus. A process of displaying anotice prompting the user to conduct measurement may be performed foreach of the physical measurement apparatus.

(7) According to still further another embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the information processing apparatus may be configured suchthat the time for measurement is determined based on the date and timeof past measurement data.

(8) According to yet further another embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the information processing apparatus may be a televisionreceiver including an antenna, a tuner circuit for selecting a desiredchannel from broadcast waves received by the antenna, a demultiplexerextracting a video signal and an audio signal from a stream transmittedover the selected channel, a video signal processing circuit processingthe video signal, an audio processing circuit processing the audiosignal, and an audio output section. The apparatus may display theprocessed video signal at the display section and may provide audiooutput of the processed audio signal from the audio output section.

(9) According to still yet further another embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the information processing apparatus may be configured suchthat determination is made on whether the measurement data of the userhave been received by the time for measurement or not, when the powersupply of the apparatus is turned on. A notice prompting the user toconduct measurement may be displayed at the display section depending onthe result of the determination.

(10) According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, theinformation processing apparatus may be configured such that thedetermination on whether the measurement data of the user have beenreceived by the time for measurement or not is made at a time whichprecedes the ending time of a program of the selected channel by apredetermined length of time. A notice prompting the user to conductmeasurement may be displayed at the display section depending on theresult of the determination.

(11) According to a still further embodiment of the present disclosure,the information processing apparatus may be configured such that thedetermination on whether the measurement data of the user have beenreceived by the time for measurement or not is made immediately afterthe user performs a channel switching operation. A notice prompting theuser to conduct measurement may be displayed at the display sectiondepending on the result of the determination.

(12) According a yet further embodiment of the present disclosure, theinformation processing apparatus may be configured to further includemeans for recording received content and means for reproducing therecorded content. The determination on whether the measurement data ofthe user have been received by the time for measurement or not may bemade when an item to be reproduced is selected from the recordedcontent. A notice prompting the user to conduct measurement may bedisplayed at the display section depending on the result of thedetermination.

(13) According to a still yet further embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the information processing apparatus may be configured tofurther include means for inputting content from outside and means forreproducing the content input from outside. The determination on whetherthe measurement data of the user have been received by the time formeasurement or not may be made during the reproduction of the contentinput from outside. A notice prompting the user to conduct measurementmay be displayed at the display section depending on the result of thedetermination.

(14) According a furthermore embodiment of the present disclosure, theinformation processing apparatus may be configured such that thedetermination on whether the measurement data of the user have beenreceived by the time for measurement or not is made when the userperforms a predetermined operation. A notice prompting the user toconduct measurement may be displayed at the display section depending onthe result of the determination.

(15) According to a still furthermore embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the information processing apparatus may be configured suchthat the determination on whether the measurement data of the user havebeen received by the time for measurement or not is made when anoperation of turning off the power supply is performed. A noticeprompting the user to conduct measurement may be displayed at thedisplay section depending on the result of the determination.

(16) According to a yet furthermore embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the information processing apparatus may be configured tofurther include a human sensor. The determination on whether themeasurement data of the user have been received by the time formeasurement or not may be made when the user is detected based on asensor output from the human sensor. A notice prompting the user toconduct measurement may be displayed at the display section depending onthe result of the determination.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, dailymeasurement data can be displayed without missing days in a preferablemanner in the form of a graph or the like while preventing a user fromcarelessly neglecting measurement using a physical measurementapparatus.

According to the above items (1) to (16), when periodic transmission ofmeasurement data from a physical measurement apparatus to the televisionreceiver is missed, a notice prompting the user to conduct measurementis displayed on the screen of the television receiver at appropriatetiming. Thus, daily measurement data can be displayed without missingdays in a preferable manner in the form of a graph or the like whilepreventing a user from carelessly neglecting measurement.

According to the item 8, the information processing apparatus may be atelevision receiver. According to the items 9 to 16, a notice promptinga user to conduct measurement can be displayed at such timing thatdisturbance to a television program being watched is minimized.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will beapparent from the detailed description with reference to embodimentsdescribed later and the attached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an exemplary configuration of atelevision receiver 10.

FIG. 2 is an illustration showing how an on-screen message for promptinga user to measure the weight is displayed on a screen of the televisionreceiver 10;

FIG. 3 is an illustration schematically showing an externalconfiguration of a physical measurement apparatus 20;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an exemplary internal configuration of thephysical measurement apparatus 20;

FIG. 5A is a flow chart showing an operational step (turning a powersupply on) executed at the television receiver 10;

FIG. 5B is a flow chart showing operational steps executed at thetelevision receiver 10 for selecting a mode;

FIG. 5C is a flow chart showing operational steps executed at thetelevision receiver 10 in a broadcast program watching mode;

FIG. 5D is a flow chart showing operational steps executed at thetelevision receiver 10 in a content watching mode;

FIG. 5E is a flow chart showing operational steps executed at thetelevision receiver 10 in an external input apparatus watching mode;

FIG. 5F is a flow chart showing operational steps executed at thetelevision receiver 10 in UI/browser operation mode;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing processing steps of a programwatching/notice display process (step S502) executed in the “broadcastprogram watching mode” in detail;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing steps of a process of displaying a noticeprompting a user to conduct measurement;

FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing steps of a process of displaying a noticeusing a human sensor (infrared human sensor);

FIG. 9 is a flow chart showing steps of another process of displaying anotice using a human sensor (using a camera as a human sensor);

FIG. 10 is an illustration of an exemplary configuration of aninformation processing system according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure; and

FIG. 11 is an illustration of a modification of the informationprocessing system shown in FIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the present disclosure will now be described withreference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 10, an information processing system according to anembodiment of the present disclosure includes a physical measurementapparatus 20 such as a scale, a blood pressure monitor, a bodycomposition meter, or a passometer and a television receiver (or adifferent type of digital apparatus) 10 which receives measurement datafrom the physical measurement apparatus 20 and displays dailymeasurement data in the form of a graph or the like. For example, when auser measures his or her weight using a scale every day, resultantmeasurement data are radio-transmitted to the television receiver 10.The received measurement data are stored at the television receiver 10with dates and times of measurement, and the data are displayed on adisplay screen in the form of a graph when the user desires.

As a modification to the information processing system shown in FIG. 10,instead of storing the measurement data at the television receiver 10,the data may be transmitted to an external server through a network suchas the internet to have the data managed by the server, as shown in FIG.11. The user can look at the daily measurement data in the form of agraph by accessing the server from the television receiver 10.

In the information processing system shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, possibledestinations of the measurement data transmitted from the physicalmeasurement apparatus 20 other than the television receiver 10 includedigital apparatus such as personal computers. It is consideredadvantageous to transmit measurement data to the television receiver 10because the television receiver 10 is a type of household apparatuswhich have spread at a higher prevalence compared to other types ofdigital apparatus having a display screen and which are used for a longtime and are therefore available for receiving measurement datasubstantially any time of a day. On the contrary, the operable time ofthe system is limited when a personal computer is used because it is noteasy to allow reception of measurement data at the PC when the PC is ina power-off state (or standby state). Further, it is not easy to operatea personal computer for aged people who have higher needs for physicalmeasurement. When a dedicated box is provided for receiving measurementdata, the cost of the system will increase. When measurement data aretransmitted to a mobile phone instead of the television receiver 10, thesystem is less likely to operate with stability because the mobile phoneis not always located in a fixed position and there is also apossibility of a dead battery.

FIG. 1 schematically shows an exemplary configuration of the televisionreceiver 10 used in the information processing system shown in FIG. 10or 11.

Digital broadcast waves for broadcasting television programs can bereceived by an antenna 104. A tuner circuit 105 selects a stream of adesired channel (tuning) when the digital broadcast waves are input tothe same from the antenna 104. A demultiplexer (DEMUX) 106 extractsvideo signals, audio signals, and data broadcast signals from the streamselected by the tuner circuit 105. The data broadcast signals includeinformation such as an EPG (electronic program guide).

The video signals are input to a video signal processing circuit 107 inwhich the signals receive required signal processing. Thereafter,on-screen message information generated by a graphics generating circuit108 is superimposed on the signals as occasion demands, and the signalsare output by a display driving section 109 to a display screen 110 anddisplayed on the same. For example, the graphics generating section 109generates an image prompting a user to conduct measurement using thephysical measurement apparatus 20 as an image to serve as an on-screenimage message according to an instruction from a CPU 119 which will bedescribed later.

The audio signals are input to an audio signal processing circuit 111 inwhich the signals receive required signal processing. Thereafter, thesignals are amplified to a desired audio level by an audio amplifiercircuit 112, and the signals drive a speaker 113. The audio signalprocessing circuit 111 performs audio synthesis to produce an alarmsound or the like for prompting the user to conduct measurement usingthe physical measurement apparatus 20.

A communication section 103 of a wireless network transmits and receivesradio signals to and from the physical measurement apparatus 20 such asa scale. A control circuit 124 controls communication operations of thecommunication section 103. Specifically, the control circuit 124controls a communication operation for transmitting transmission datarequired by a high-order application layer executed on the CPU 119 whichwill be described later. The circuit 124 decodes signals receivedthrough the communication section 130 and supplies the signals to thehigh-order application layer.

In the example shown in FIG. 1, the television receiver 10 is controlledwith a remote controller using a radio wave communication system, andthe communication section 103 is used for control with a remotecontroller. A user controls the television receiver 10 using a remotecontroller (not shown), and a radio-transmitted control code is receivedat the communication section 103.

The television receiver 10 is connected to an external network such asthe internet through a network terminal 117. A communication processcircuit 116 is constituted by an Ethernet (registered trademark)interface, and the circuit performs communication processes over theexternal network according to instructions from the CPU 119 which willbe described later.

Circuit components such as a CPU 119, a flash ROM 120, and a DRAM 121are provided for controlling the television receiver 10 as a whole.Control codes received by a remote control receiver 122 (or thecommunication section 103) are transferred to the CPU 119 through aninternal bus 118. The CPU 119 decodes the control codes to controloperations of the television receiver 10. Information received at thecommunication section 103 is input to the CPU 119 through the controlcircuit 124.

For example, the CPU 119 stores measurement data of each user receivedfrom the physical measurement apparatus 20 in the flash ROM 120 oranother storage device, each piece of measurement data being associatedwith the time and date of measurement.

The CPU 119 instructs the graphics generating circuit 108 to collectmeasurement data of each user, to create a graph from the data, and todisplay the graph on the screen. Alternatively, the CPU 119 may instructthe communication processing circuit 116 to transmit measurement data ofeach user received from the physical measurement apparatus 20 to apredetermined server on the external network and may instruct thecircuit 116 to access measurement data of a user saved in the server orthe data of a graph obtained by collecting the measurement data.

The CPU 119 instructs the graphics generating circuit 108 to generate anon-screen message for prompting a user to conduct measurement using thephysical measurement apparatus 20 and instructs the audio signalprocessing circuit 111 to perform audio synthesis to generate an alarmsound for prompting a user to conduct measurement.

For example, when no measurement data is transmitted from the physicalmeasurement apparatus 20 past a certain time of the day, i.e., a timeset by a user in advance as a time for daily measurement or a time atwhich the user usually conducts measurement, an on-screen messageprompting the user to conduct measurement of his or her weight or thelike is displayed over the presently viewed program on the screen of thetelevision receiver 10 as shown in FIG. 2. The user may be prompted tomeasurement not only by an on-screen message but also by an alarm sound.In particular, words generated using audio synthesis will be moreclearly understood. While an on-screen message cannot be displayed whilethe power supply of the television receiver 10 is off, the use of analarm sound or words generated by audio synthesis allows the user to beprompted to measurement only by an operation of the audio output sectionof the television receiver. A time of the day set by a user as time toconduct measurement using the physical measurement apparatus 20 will behereinafter referred to as “time for measurement”. A time formeasurement may be also understood as a time for prompting a user toconduct measurement. A plurality of times of the day may be set as timesfor measurement. A method of determining a time for measurement will bedescribed later.

It has been stated above that the communication section 103 serves bothof the wireless network for connecting the television receiver to thephysical measurement apparatus 20 and operations using a remotecontroller. For example, radio communication methods of this typeapplicable to the embodiment include the ZigBee method which has beenstandardized as the short-range radio communication standard RF4CE(Radio Frequency for Consumer Electronics) or IEEE 802.15.4 standard.

Presently, remote controllers utilizing electric waves instead ofinfrared light are available, and some of such remote controllersutilize the RF4CE method. The RF4CE method is used in this embodimentfor the following reasons. The battery of a remote controller canoperate over a long life. Power consumption can be kept low even when areceiver of the communication section 103 is normally kept in a receivemode. A sufficient control distance can be obtained. While other typesof radio format such as the Bluetooth format may be used by thecommunication section 103, the use of the RF4CE method providesadvantages listed below.

(1) Power consumption of a transmitter can be substantially kept zerowhen the transmitter is not transmitting or in a standby state, andpower required for one transmission operation can be kept small.Therefore, even when a transmitter is provided in the physicalmeasurement apparatus 20, the transmitter can be driven by a dry cell.There is no need for a power switch, and the life of the battery can bekept long. It is therefore possible to provide a scale which is similarto scales according to the related art in user friendliness.

(2) The power consumption of a receiver can be very small even when itis kept ready for reception, and the television receiver 10 can receivedata even in the standby state like the remote controller. Therefore, auser is not required to turn on the power supply of the televisionreceiver 10 to start measurement.

(3) One receiver can be used for reception of signals from both of an RFremote controller and a measurement apparatus, and the receiver canreceive data from a plurality of physical measurement apparatus, whichis advantageous in terms of cost.

(4) Transmitted data can be enciphered. Therefore, the data will not beeasily accessed even if the communication is bugged.

As will be described later, a human sensor such as an infrared humansensor or a camera may be incorporated in the television receiver 10.The illustration of such a human sensor is omitted FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 schematically shows an external configuration of the physicalmeasurement apparatus 20 used in the information processing system shownin FIG. 10 or 11. FIG. 4 shows an exemplary internal configuration ofthe physical measurement apparatus 20. The illustrated physicalmeasurement apparatus 20 is a scale having a body fat measuringfunction, and scale includes user selection buttons B1 to B4 foridentifying a person to be measured.

Any of numbers 1 to 4 is assigned to each user or each family member inadvance. A user conducts measurement using the physical measurementapparatus 20 after pressing the user selection button associated withthe number assigned to the user. The weight of the user measured by aweight sensor 401 is displayed on a weight value display section 402. Acontrol section 403 radio-transmits the number assigned to the userselection button which has been pressed along with resultant measurementdata and the time and date of measurement from a radio transmitter 404.Upon receipt of the data, the television receiver 10 identifies the userbased on the number. Measurement data of each user are stored inassociation of dates and times when measurement is conducted using thephysical measurement apparatus 20. Thus, measurement data of a pluralityof users can be managed.

When a user conducts measurement after pressing a wrong button, thepress on the wrong button can be detected at the television receiverupon receipt of measurement data because the measurement data aresignificantly different from measurement data of the same user stored inthe past. In such a case, a notice indicating that a wrong button hasbeen pressed (or prompting the user to conduct measurement again afterpressing the right button) may be displayed over the program that ispresently watched on the screen.

Another method for managing measurement data of a plurality of users atthe television receiver 10 is the use of a face recognition technique.When the television receiver 10 receives measurement data from thephysical measurement apparatus 20, users conducting measurement usingthe physical measurement apparatus 20 may be identified by the facerecognition technique, and measurement data of each user may be storedin association with the date and time of measurement. Thus, measurementdata of a plurality of users can be managed. When face recognition isperformed, a message specific to each of recognized users may bedisplayed.

The scale is an example of the physical measurement apparatus 20, andthe information processing system shown in FIG. 10 or 11 may employvarious types of physical measurement apparatus such as a blood pressuremonitor and a passometer which are used such that daily measurementvalues can be recorded. Let us assume that the system includes not onlya scale but also a passometer, a blood pressure monitor, and the likeand that plural types of measurement data are managed by one televisionreceiver 10. Then, management must be carried out such that the numberassigned to each item of data of each physical measurement apparatus isassociated with a person. Since the physical measurement apparatus andthe television receiver 10 are to communicate with each other on awireless basis, pairing must be carried out to enable the communication.The physical measurement apparatus may transmit information onthemselves to the television receiver to allow the types of the physicalmeasurement apparatus to be registered at the television receiver 10.Based on the registration, a scheme employing a table may be adopted,the scheme involving the step of inputting a number assigned to eachuser in association with each physical measurement apparatus (see thetable shown below) to allow. According to the scheme, relationshipsbetween users and physical measurement apparatus can be registered inadvance to allow the pieces of data to be managed in association witheach other. When a notice or alarm sound is used to prompt users tomeasurement, each user can be advised of the item to be measured (theapparatus to be used). A different time for measurement can be set foreach physical measurement apparatus. A time at which each user is toconduct measurement may be registered in association with each physicalmeasurement apparatus. Each item to be set on the table is input using aGUI provided on the television receiver 10 or running a scriptdownloaded through the internet using a browser.

TABLE Measurement Measurement Measurement User Apparatus No. TimeApparatus No. Time Apparatus No. Time A Scale 1 1 18:00 Passometer 1 — —Blood pressure meter 1 1 18:00 B Scale 1 2 21:00 Passometer 2 — — Bloodpressure meter 1 2 21:00 C Scale 1 3  8:00 Passometer 3 — — — — D Scale1 4 16:00 Passometer 4 — — — —

In order to control one's physical condition properly, it is importantto conduct measurement using a physical measurement apparatus every day.However, most users of physical measurement apparatus tend to neglectthe measurement sometimes, whereas the users watch television programssubstantially every day as if it were a daily routine.

In the information processing system according to the presentembodiment, when no measurement data is transmitted from the physicalmeasurement apparatus 20 past a time for measurement, i.e., a time ofthe day set by a user as a time for conducting measurement using thephysical measurement apparatus, an on-screen message prompting the userto conduct weight measurement or the like is displayed over the programpresently watched o the screen of the television receiver 10 as shown inFIG. 2. A time for measurement at which a user is prompted tomeasurement is a time set in advance by the user or a time at which theuser usually conducts measurement. A user may be prompted to measurementby an alarm sound instead of an on-screen message. Thus, a user can beprevented from carelessly neglecting measurement, and daily measurementdata obtained without missing days can be displayed in a preferable formsuch as a graph.

Referring to the method of setting a time for measurement at which auser is prompted to measurement by the television receiver 10, it willbe convenient if a method for setting such a time based on the times ofmeasurement of past measurement data is available in addition to amethod in which a time for measurement is directly input by a user. Inconsideration to possible cases in which measurement is conducted pluraltimes a day, the time of a day may be divided into blocks of time, andan average of the times of measurement of past measurement may beobtained for each block of time. The average time may be set as a timefor prompting a user to conduct measurement. A time for measurement isdetermined for each user individually. In the case wherein measurementdata of a plurality of users are managed by setting a time formeasurement for each user separately, the calculation of the time formeasurement is carried out by each user.

In consideration to the fact that the television receiver 10 isessentially intended for displaying television programs to be watched byusers, it may be preferable to display a notice prompting a user toconduct measurement at such timing that disturbance imparted by such amessage to a television program being watched will be minimized.Examples of timing at which disturbance to television programs can besuppressed are shown below. Determination may be made at such timing tocheck whether no measurement data has been transmitted past a calculatedtime for measurement and, if no measurement data has been transmitted, anotice may be displayed to prompt the user to conduct measurement usingthe physical measurement apparatus 20.

A notice may be displayed:

(1) immediately after the power supply of the television receiver 10 isturned on;

(2) several minutes before the end of a program being watched (theending time of the program can be known by accessing the EPG data of theprogram being watched);

(3) immediately after a channel switching operation performed by a user;

(4) immediately after a person is detected by a human sensor or the likeprovided in the television receiver 10;

(5) immediately before the time at which the power supply of thetelevision receiver 10 is normally turned off every day;

(6) for several seconds following an operation of turning off the powersupply of the television receiver 10; or

(7) when a user performs some operation on the television receiver 10such as an operation of displaying an EPG.

An advice may be given to a user based on measurement data in additionto the operations of prompting the user to conduct measurement andpresenting measurement data in the form of a graph, whereby the user ismotivated to continue conducting the measurement every day. There areexemplary modes of feedback provided to a user as described below otherthan prompting the user to conduct measurement and presentingmeasurement data.

(1) Words pleasing the user may be displayed when the user completesmeasurement.

(2) A notice prompting the user to conduct measurement may be repeatedlydisplayed unless the user conducts measurement, and words having aharder tone may be used each time the message is repeated.

(3) A notice may be displayed when an abrupt change in measurement datais observed or when measurement data indicating a possible problem inthe health of the user is detected. For example, if the blood pressureis abnormally higher than the normal, the user may be prompted toconduct re-measurement, and a warning message may be displayed when theblood pressure is still high after the re-measurement.

FIGS. 5A to 5F show operational steps executed by the televisionreceiver 10 in the form of a flow chart. For example, the illustratedoperational steps may be implemented in the form of predeterminedprogram codes executed by the CPU 119.

As shown in FIGS. 5A, and 5B, when the power supply of the televisionreceiver 10 is turned on, the receiver enters one of a plurality ofmodes (step S501). For example, the television receiver may enter themode in which the receiver had stayed immediately before the powersupply was previously turned off. The television receiver may forciblybe put in a broadcast program watching mode. Alternatively, thetelevision receiver may enter a mode selected by the user after thepower supply is turned on. The mode that the television receiver entersdepends on the specifications of the product.

The “broadcast program watching mode” is a mode to allow a user to watcha broadcast program, and a user can watch a program by selecting abroadcast wave in this mode. As shown in FIG. 5C, when the televisionreceiver is in this mode, a program watching/notice display process,which will be separately defined, is executed (step S502).

A “content watching mode” is a mode for allowing a user to select andwatch one of a plurality of content items which can be displayed inadvance in the form of a list. Some television receivers have a harddisc recorder incorporated therein which provides the function ofrecording broadcast programs and accumulating such records. The programcontent items thus recorded and accumulated may be displayed in the formof a list, and a user may select and watch one item of content.Similarly, a plurality of on-demand content items available on a networkmay be displayed in the form of a list, and a user may select and watchone item of content.

In the “content watching mode”, a display process, which will beseparately defined, is executed as shown in FIG. 5D (step S503). Theterm “display process” in this context means a process of displaying anon-line notice for prompting a user to conduct measurement using aphysical measurement apparatus 20, and steps of the process will bedetailed later.

Thereafter, a content list, which is a list of the recorded andaccumulated program content items, is displayed on a display screen 110(step S504). When a user selects a desired content item from the contentlist by operating a remote controller (step S505: Yes), the displayprocess, which will be separately defined, is executed (step S506).Thereafter, a reproduction process is performed on the selected content(step S507).

When the content reproducing process is thereafter terminated orinterrupted (step S508: Yes), the flow returns to step S503.

An “external input watching mode” is a mode for watching and listeningto images and sounds from a DVD player (omitted in FIG. 1) which isconnected to the television receiver 10 through an input terminal (notshown in FIG. 1) such as an HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface).

As shown in FIG. 5E, in the “external input apparatus watching mode”, anexternal input is first displayed (step S509), and the display process,which will be separately defined, is subsequently executed (step S510).Thereafter, the television receiver stands by until another mode isselected (step S511).

A “UI/browser operation mode” is a mode provided to accommodate an EPGdisplay function of the television receiver 10, television operations,display of a dedicated screen for allowing apparatus connected to thetelevision receiver to be operated more easily, and display of databroadcasts. Further, television receivers having a network browserincorporated therein are recently available. The UI/browser operationmode also accommodates operations of such television receivers.

As shown in FIG. 5F, in the “UI/browser operation mode”, a displayprocess, which will be separately defined, is performed (step S512), anda UI screen or a browser is subsequently activated (step S513).Thereafter, the television receiver stands by until another mode isselected (step S514).

Although four modes are illustrated in FIGS. 5A to 5F by way of example,each of the modes may be subdivided as occasion demands. For example,the “broadcast program watching mode” may be subdivided to accommodate aplurality of broadcast networks such as surface wave broadcast andsatellite broadcast. The “content watching mode” may be subdivided intoa mode for watching content accumulated in the hard disc and a mode forwatching on-demand content available on a network. The “external inputapparatus watching mode” may be subdivided into modes each of which isassociated with one input terminal. The “UI/browser operation mode” maybe subdivided to accommodate each type of user interface, and this modemay alternatively be separated to establish an independent mode foraccommodating a browser.

The flow of each mode enters an endless loop when the televisionreceiver stands by until another mode is selected. Any process in theflow of each mode is interrupted when another mode is selected, and theprocesses of the selected mode are performed from the beginning of theflow.

FIG. 6 shows processing steps of the program watching/notice displayprocess (step S502) executed in the “broadcast program watching mode” indetail in the form of a flow chart. For example, the processing stepscan be implemented in the form of predetermined program codes executedby the CPU 119.

In the “broadcast program watching mode”, a display process, which willbe separately defined, is first performed (step S601).

Next, information on the program being watched is acquired from EPG databased on the channel being watched and the current time, and the endingtime of the program is extracted from the information (step S602). TheEPG data are data of program lists of all channels transmitted to thetelevision receiver as data broadcast signals using digital broadcast,and the data are acquired in advance and accumulated in the televisionreceiver 10 for displaying program lists.

In order to display a notice for prompting the user to conductmeasurement at a time immediately preceding the end of the program, atime calculated by subtracting a predetermined length of time from theprogram ending time is set as a display starting time (step S603).

Thereafter, the television set stands by until the display starting timecomes (step S605: No). When the user performs a tuning operation beforethe display starting time (step S604: Yes), the flow returns to stepS601 at which a display starting time associated with the programbroadcast over the newly selected channel is set.

When the display starting time comes (step S605: yes), a displayprocess, which will be separately defined, is performed (step S606).After the display process, the television receiver stands by until theprogram ends. When the next program is started (step S607: Yes), theflow returns to step S601 to set the next display starting time.

The steps of the program watching/notice display process shown in FIG. 6constitute a flow of processes for prompting a user to conductmeasurement when the television receiver enters the “broadcast programwatching mode”, when a channel is switched to another, or when the endof a program is coming soon.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart detailing the steps of the process of displayinga notice for prompting a user to conduct measurement executed at stepsS503, S507, S510, and S512 of the flow chart shown in FIG. 5F and thesteps S601 and S606 of the flow chart shown in FIG. 6. The processingsteps are called when conditions for displaying a notice are met in eachmode. For example, the steps may be implemented in the form ofpredetermined program codes executed by the CPU 119.

First, a time for measurement determined in advance is compared with thecurrent time (step S701). When time has not passed beyond the time formeasurement yet (step S701: No), the flow of processing steps isterminated.

When time has passed beyond the time for measurement (step S701: Yes),it is checked whether measurement data have already been received fromthe physical measurement apparatus 20 (step S702). When measurement datahave already been received (step S702: Yes), the flow of processingsteps is terminated because the user is not required to conductmeasurement at this timing.

When the measurement data of interest are not available (step S702:Yes), a notice for prompting the user to conduct measurement isdisplayed for a predetermined time (step S703).

Recent television receivers include products incorporating a humansensor, and a notice for prompting a user to conduct measurement may bedisplayed at timing when the user is detected by a human sensor.

Normally, a human sensor provides a detection output so as to savepower. Specifically, when it is sensed or determined by such a sensor ofa television receiver that a person has left a position in front of thescreen, the display is turned off. The display is turned on when thesensor senses or determines that a person has come in front of thescreen. Such a sensor section may employ an infrared light sensor whichsenses infrared light emitted by a person or a camera which senses theface of a person directly. A notice can be displayed as the display isturned on when a person appears in front of the screen regardless of thesensing method employed.

The method of sensing the face of a person using a camera not onlyallows the faces of a plurality of persons to be sensed simultaneouslybut also allows a person to be identified from the shape of his or herface. When the shape of the face of each user is registered in advance,a notice can be displayed for a person who is identified as thusdescribed. When another person comes in front of the screen, the newperson can be identified, and a notice can be displayed for the personif the user has not conducted measurement.

When a notice is displayed using a human sensor, the operation isperformed in an independent manner which is not associated with the modeof the television receiver, unlike the processing steps shown in FIGS.5A to 5F and FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 shows steps of a process of displaying a notice using a humansensor in the form of a flow chart. FIG. 8 shows an example ofprocessing steps utilizing an infrared human sensor. For example, theprocessing steps may be implemented in the form of predetermined programcodes executed by the CPU 119.

The processing steps are called when a person is detected by theinfrared human sensor, and the notice display process shown in FIG. 7 isexecuted (step S801).

FIG. 9 shows steps of another process of displaying a notice using ahuman sensor in the form of a flow chart. FIG. 9 shows an example ofprocessing steps utilizing a camera as a human sensor. For example, theprocessing steps may be implemented in the form of predetermined programcodes executed by the CPU 119.

The processing steps are called when a person is detected by the cameraused as a human sensor. First, the detected person is identified basedon an image photographed by the camera (step S901). It is checkedwhether the identified person is a person included in the users of thesystem (step S902).

When the detected person is not a user of the system (step S902: No),the flow of processing steps is terminated.

When the detected person is a user of the system (step S902: Yes), atime for measurement set for the user in advance is compared with thecurrent time (step S903). When time has not passed beyond the time formeasurement (step S903: No), the flow of processing steps is terminated.

When time has passed beyond the time for measurement for the user (stepS903: Yes), it is further checked whether measurement data have alreadybeen received from the physical measurement apparatus 20 (step S904).When measurement data have already been received (step S904: Yes), theflow of processing step is terminated because the user is not requiredfor conducting measurement at this timing.

When the measurement data of interest are not available (step S904:Yes), a notice for prompting the user to conduct measurement isdisplayed for a predetermined time (step S905).

The present disclosure has been described with reference to specificembodiments. However, it should be understood by those skilled in theart that various modifications, combinations, sub-combinations andalterations of the embodiments may be made without departing from thespirits of the present disclosure.

The present disclosure has focused on the embodiment in which atelevision receiver is used as an information processing apparatus fordisplaying measurement data of a user obtained by a physical measurementapparatus. However, the present disclosure is not limited to such anembodiment. Personal computer and various types of digital apparatushaving a display screen may alternatively be used as the informationprocessing apparatus. Physical measurement apparatus which can be usedin an information processing system according to the embodiment of thepresent disclosure include various types of apparatus other than scales,e.g., blood pressure monitors, body composition meters, and passometers.

The present disclosure contains subject matter related to that disclosedin Japanese Priority Patent Application JP 2010-145425 filed in theJapan Patent Office on Jun. 25, 2010, the entire contents of which ishereby incorporated by reference.

The present disclosure has been made in the form of exemplification, andthe content of the present disclosure should not be construed to belimited to them. The scopes of the appended claims should be taken intoconsideration to determine the gist of the present disclosure.

1. (canceled)
 2. An information processing system comprising: a physicalmeasurement apparatus measuring the body of a user andradio-transmitting measurement data; and an information processingapparatus receiving the measurement data radio-transmitted from thephysical measurement apparatus, controlling display of information onthe measurement data of the user on a screen, and controlling display ofa notice prompting the user to conduct measurement when no measurementdata is received by a predetermined time for measurement, saidinformation processing apparatus having a human sensor to detect apresence of the user without use of another user, so that the noticeprompting the user to conduct the measurement is displayed on the screenwhen (i) no measurement data is received by the predetermined time formeasurement and (ii) the human sensor detects the presence of the user.3. An information processing system according to claim 2, in which thehuman sensor has an infrared light sensor which is utilized to detectthe presence of the user.
 4. An information processing system accordingto claim 3, in which during operation the infrared light sensor of thehuman sensor is able to sense infrared light emitted from a face of theuser so as to detect the presence of the user.
 5. An informationprocessing apparatus comprising: a display control circuit; a humansensor to detect a presence of the user without use of another user; aradio communication section; and a storage section, the radiocommunication section receiving measurement data of the userradio-transmitted from a physical measurement apparatus, and the displaycontrol circuit controlling display of information on the measurementdata from the user, a notice prompting the user to conduct measurementbeing displayed when (i) no measurement data is received by apredetermined time for measurement and (ii) the human sensor detects thepresence of the user.
 6. An information processing apparatus accordingto claim 5, in which the human sensor has an infrared light sensor whichis utilized to detect the presence of the user.
 7. An informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 6, in which during operation theinfrared light sensor of the human sensor is able to sense infraredlight emitted from a face of the user so as to detect the presence ofthe user.
 8. An information processing apparatus according to claim 5,further comprising an audio output section to provide audio output of analarm sound prompting the user to conduct measurement when nomeasurement data is received by the time for measurement.
 9. Aninformation processing apparatus according to claim 5, whereinmeasurement data of each user received from the physical measurementapparatus are stored in the storage section in association with a timeand date for measurement for each user, and changes in the measurementdata of the user are displayed in the form of a graph.
 10. Aninformation processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein themeasurement data are transmitted from the physical measurementapparatus, the data being accompanied by identification information ofthe user, and a notice is displayed when the received data aresignificantly different from past measurement data of the same userwhich have been stored in the storage section to notify the user of thedifference.
 11. An information processing apparatus according to claim5, comprising: a plurality of physical measurement apparatus, wherein aseparate time for measurement is set for each of the physicalmeasurement apparatus when measurement data of the user are receivedfrom the plurality of physical measurement apparatus, and a process ofcontrolling display of a notice prompting the user to conductmeasurement is performed for each of the physical measurement apparatus.12. An information processing apparatus according to claim 5, whereinthe time for measurement is determined based on the date and time ofpast measurement data.
 13. An information processing apparatus accordingto claim 5, further comprising: an antenna; a tuner circuit forselecting a desired channel from broadcast waves received by theantenna; a demultiplexer extracting a video signal and an audio signalfrom a stream transmitted over the selected channel; a video signalprocessing circuit processing the video signal; and an audio processingcircuit processing the audio signal; and an audio output section, theapparatus controlling display of the processed video signal andproviding audio output of the processed audio signal from the audiooutput section.
 14. An information processing apparatus according toclaim 13, further comprising: means for recording received content; andmeans for reproducing the recorded content.
 15. An informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising: meansfor inputting content from outside; and means for reproducing thecontent input from outside.